Carrying NASA science instruments to the Moon, Intuitive Machines’ flight controllers conducted a lunar correction maneuver to raise the orbit for Odysseus overnight. As a result, the anticipated landing time is now 4:24 p.m. EST on Thursday, Feb. 22. NASA coverage of the mission will begin at 3 p.m. on NASA+, NASA TV, and the …
The Sun emitted two strong solar flares, the first one peaking at 6:07 p.m. EST on Feb. 21, 2024, and the second peaking at 1:32 a.m. EST on Feb. 22, 2024. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the Sun constantly, captured an image of the event. Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and …
NASA’s mission to study Jupiter’s icy moon Europa completed another milestone as power supply hardware for the Europa Clipper spacecraft arrived on Wednesday, Feb. 21, at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Workers unloaded the five-panel solar arrays at the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. The solar arrays will attach to the spacecraft to power …
Heart scans, 3D printing, and fire safety were the top research topics aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday. The Expedition 70 crew also spent its day on a variety of scientific maintenance and cargo activities. Astronauts Loral O’Hara and Satoshi Furukawa kicked off their day continuing more experimental work for the CIPHER suite of …
Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lander has completed lunar orbit insertion successfully and is currently orbiting the Moon. Odysseus continues to be in excellent health and is approximately 60 miles (92km) from the Moon. The spacecraft will orbit the Moon for approximately one day before beginning its descent toward the lunar surface. The landing opportunity is targeted …
Payloads: Advanced Plant Experiment-10 (APEX-10): The crew deactivated Veggie units 1 and 3. On Earth, plant and microbial associations are key to the success of individual plants, but scientists do not fully understand how the space environment may alter these associations. Plant-Microbe Interactions in Space (APEX-10) tests whether the beneficial microbe Trichoderma harzianum confers increased …
87 Progress (87P) Docking: Following the completion of a 34-orbit rendezvous, 87P successfully docked to the SM aft port on Saturday, February 17th, at 6:06 AM CST. On Sunday, the crew then performed leak checks, opened hatches, and began unloading cargo. Carrying food, fuel, and supplies, 87P launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Wednesday, February …
Amir Ibrahim is the PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem) project science lead for atmospheric correction at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. What is your favorite atmospheric or ocean related book or movie? My favorite ocean movie is “The Perfect Storm.” I know it’s not a happy movie, but I think it’s …
A host of biomedical studies were underway aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday to help doctors understand the effects of microgravity on the human body. The Expedition 70 crew also continued its ongoing cargo transfers and lab maintenance activities. Blood vessel scans took place throughout the day on the orbital lab providing researchers data …
Preliminary telemetry indicates that NASA’s OSIRIS-APEX spacecraft successfully completed a two-month operation that brought it 25 million miles closer to the Sun than it was designed to function. The spacecraft continues its journey to reach asteroid Apophis in April 2029. The OSIRIS-APEX spacecraft, formerly known as OSIRIS-REx, repositioned one of its two solar arrays to …
